At the outset, let us state that we are not offering any
fool-proof way of stopping the violence in Brazil. Rather, we want to
report on what Brazilians think are the best ways to deal with an issue that
concerns Brazilians greatly. Statistically, violence has reduced the life
expectancy of the average Brazilian by 2.7 years, in addition to the constant
psychological state of siege mentality. It would be fair to say that
Brazilians see this as one of the major issues.

There is no lack of proposals to stop the violence.
However, there also appears to be no conclusive evidence as to which methods
work best (or even just better) and consequently no consensus. Here are
some common ideas:

MORE POLICE: At the most direct level, the violence
is seen as a law enforcement problem. We should put more policemen on
the street and make sure that criminals are caught and punished to the full
extent of the law. This becomes a test of commitment on the part of
society to hire more police and to give them the legal tools to do their job.

Although this seems so obvious, there is some
reluctance and concern. The existing police force do not engender much
trust or confidence. They seemed to be very good at harassing homeless
people, street vendors, unlicensed taxi drivers and other marginal groups, but
they seemed unwilling to take on the heavily-armed, politically connected and
financially powerful drug gangs. It is also common belief that the
poorly paid police can often be bribed to turn a blind eye.

There are also others who believe that the law favors the
criminals and restrains law enforcement, so that extrajudicial means must be
used, including paramilitary death squads for cleansing the criminal elements.

MORE JOBS: Perhaps the strongest theoretical
criticism of the law enforcement solution is that it treats the symptom and
not the disease. The immediate cause of violent crimes is laid to the
high unemployment rate. Brazil has one of the largest number of
unemployed persons in the world, just after Russia and India, and there is no
social protection for the unemployed as well as the many more who live below
the poverty line. Violent crimes are thought to be committed by
desperate people who have no
obvious alternatives to eke out a living, but also as a result of the constant
anxiety of living on the edge. As the Sao Paulo governor Mario Coves
said, "There is no solution to the violence as long as the unemployment
index continues at its present level, and this shameful poverty
persists." If such was the case, the solution would be create more
jobs to ease the social and economic pressures.

BETTER EDUCATION: The idea that creating more
jobs would solve the violence problem can also be criticized for being
superficial. Brazil has one of the most extreme unequal distribution of
social and economic resources in the world. Unemployment is simply a
manifestation of these inequalities. The point is not to create
jobs for which there is no real economic need and for which the applicants are
often ill-qualified and unmotivated. The real point is to provide the
population with the education and training that allow them to compete with
each other regardless of their parents' socio-economic status and also against
people in other nations of the world.

We will now cite some survey data from the TGI Brasil
study. This is a survey of 10,624 persons between the ages of 12 to 64
years old conducted during 2001. The relevant survey results are:

49% completely agreed with the statement "To end the
violence, we need to get more police"

68% completely agreed with the statement "To end the
violence, we need to create more jobs"

75% completely agreed with the statement "To end the
violence, we need to improve the level of education"

In the following table, we have tabulated these responses
separately by various demographic groups.

Demographic Characteristics

% Completely agree with
"Get More Police"

% Completely agree with
"Create More Jobs"

% Completely agree with
"Improve Education"

Socio-Economic Class
AB
C
DE

39%
53%
55%

61%
71%
73%

75%
76%
73%

Age/Sex
Male 12-19 years old
Male 20-24 years old
Male 25-34 years old
Male 35-44 years old
Male 45-54 years old
Male 55-64 years old

Female 12-19 years old
Female 20-24 years old
Female 25-34 years old
Female 35-44 years old
Female 45-54 years old
Female 55-64 years old

Support for a stronger police presence is stronger among
the middle and lower classes. Crime waves are usually not class wars when the
suppressed lower classes rise up against the exploitative upper
classes. If street crimes are committed by lower class denizens (and
we do not take this as a given), the victims are more likely to be
lower class because of factors such as opportunity and vulnerability.

Support for a stronger police presence is also stronger
among younger males 12-24 years old and among the youngest and oldest
women. As it stands, homicide is the leading cause of death among
young men 15 to 24 years old. For violent crimes such as armed robbery, women
appear to be easier victims. In addition, women are subject to crimes of
sexual abuse.

The support for more jobs decreases with socio-economic
class and educational level.

The support for better education appears to cut evenly
across all demographic groups.

From these data, Brazilians seemed to feel that better
education is the best and most effective method to end the violence. But
such policy matters are not necessarily up to a majority vote, even in a fully
democratic society. For even a majority vote cannot create the massive
investment of money and resources required to bring about an educational system
with excellence and equal opportunity.